Porch shade and operating mechanism



Jan. 23, 1940. A. c. HOUGH PORCH SHADE AND OPERATING MECHANISM Filed Aug. 26, 1938 Rtgr Izzy/ 2 v JFZQZ 8.1% "I '30 p-anying drawing,

'35 prises a valance board or head strip H, a

Patented Jan. 23, 1940 PATENT OFFICE PORCH SHADE AND OPERATING MECH Azel C. Hough, J anesville,

Shade Corporation, necticut ANISM Wis., assignor to Hough a corporation of Con- Application August 26, 1938, Serial No. 226,916 9 Claims.' (Cl. 15616) This invention relates to cord locks for porch shades and the like.

One of the objects of the invention is the provision of a new and improved cord lock having anti-friction means over which the cord extends and with which the eccentric lock member cooperates for holding the cord and with it the shade or blind in adjusted position, the pivot pin on which the roller is mounted constituting the means for attaching the lockto the head piece of the shade.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved cord lock having novel means for securing the lock to the shade 16 and for securing the operating mechanism to its casing or support.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved cord lock for porch shades and the like having novel casing 20 and means for securing the same to the shade. A still further object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved cord lock that is inexpensive to manufacture, simple in construction, efiicient in use and that may be ap- 25 plied with a minimum of time, energy and expense.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description, taken in connection with the accomin which- Fig. l is a front elevation of a porch shade;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 44 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a section on the line 55 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6-601" Fig. 4;

and

Fig. 7 is a transverse view through the shade and cord lock showing a modified form of cas- 40 ing for the cord look.

In the construction of porch shades and like structures, it is desirable that the raising and lowering mechanism, the cord locking devices and the means for attaching the same' to the "'45 shade be of extremely simple construction due to the exposure to which the parts are subjected and the necessity or requirements for inexpensive constructions.

The present invention seeks to provvide a sim- 50 plified construction that may be fabricated at a low cost and that may be readily and easily applied to shades, screens and like structures.

Referring now to the drawing, the reference.

' character l0 designates a shade which combot tom bar or end strip l2 an'd intermediate slats l3 which are woven together by cords l4 crossed above and below each slat as is usualin such constructions. The height of the shade is adjusted by means of cords l5 and [B which form 5 loops for engaging the bar ner. The cords l5 and I6 extend about the slats adjacent to their outer ends and the cord l5 has its upper end secured to the lower end of an attaching member l1, as shown at 18 Fig. 3.

' The attaching member 11 has its upper end return bent as at IQ for forming a hook which is adapted to engage a staple or the like for suspending the shade in position. extends downwardly from the attaching member I! beneath the bar 12 and upwardly on the opposite, or What may be termed the inner, side, then through a glide 19 which is 'pivotally connected to a bolt 2| to which the attaching member I1 is connected. A metal loop or clip 22 extends over the head strip and has its ends provided with aligned openings through which the bolt or pivot 2| extends. The loop member 22 rests on the upper edge of the head strip II which prevents the loop from turning.v The loop 22 has its inner end at each corner thereof bent outwardly as at 23 for engaging the supports ,I'! at each side edge thereof for holding the same from turning on the ,pin 2|.

or. pivot 2| may be secured inposition by a cotter pin or the like 24. x The cord [5 extends through the cordlock 25 as will presently be described. The cord I6,

l2 in the usual manwhich in reality is integral with the cord but will be described as though it were a separate cord, has its upper end attached to the offset end 26 of the attaching or supporting member 21. The upper end of the member 2'lis bent to form a hook portion 28 corresponding to the hook member l9 and constitutes means for engaging a staple orsupporting member for the shade. The .cord extends downwardly on the outer side of the shades beneath the same and upwardly on theinner side of the shade and over the roller of the cord'lock 25. T he two cords l5 and i6 extend downwardly from lthe lock and in order that they should be properly positioned in the look, a parting or dividing bar 29 is provided. One of the cords passes on one side of the bar and the other on the other side thereby preventing twisting of the cords about each other when the shade is lowered. The parting or. dividing bar has its ends attached to spacers 30 and 40, each of which'is The cord 15 The bolt 30 as. j

provided with reduced ends engaging in corresponding openings in the side walls 32 and 33 of the casing 3!, Figs. 5 and 6. The cords l5 and it have been described as two cords but in practice a single cord is employed for this purpose, one end being attached to the supporting member 26 and the other to the supporting member H as shown on the drawing.

The lock member 25 for holding the cords l5 and 16 when the shade has been adjusted to the desired height will now be described. It comprises a casing 3| which may be, and preferably is, formed by a single strip of sheet metal bent to the shape of an inverted U for forming an inner plate 32, an outer plate 33 and an upper connecting portion 36. Tongues 35 and 35 are struck out of the upper portion 34 of the casing 3i and bent upwardly and then outwardly, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, for engaging the upper surface of the head strip H. Another tongue 3'! is struck out of the lower portion of the outer plate 33 and engages beneath the head strip M, Fig. 6, for positioning the casing on the head strip. The casing is held in position against the head strip by a bolt 38 which extends through the roller 21], head strip H and is threaded in the support 27, as shown in Fig. 5. In order to reduce the frictional resistance to the rotation of the roller 20, the roller is provided at each end with outwardly extending hub portions 39 and $1. The roller is loosely mounted on a bushing 60 which is loosely mounted on the bolt 38.

Suitable means are provided for holding the cords l5 and l 6 in adjusted position. In the form of the construction selected to illustrate one embodiment of the invention, an eccentric gripping member or dog 42 is The dog is pivoted as at 43 at one end thereof and the pivot is so located that when the dog moves to the position shown in Fig. 1, it will grip the cord between the teeth 42a on the dog and the roller 20. The teeth 42a are more or less blunt so that they will grip the cord without injuring the fibers thereof. The teeth 59 at the central and pivoted end of the dog are finer and sharper in order that they may easily engage the cord where it is desired to turn the dog to cord gripping position.

In the operation of the device, when it is desired to raise the shade, the operator pulls vertically downward on the free ends of the cords l5 and I6, that is, on the looped portion 44, Fig. l,

I until the shade is adjusted to the desired height after which the operator moves the cords outwardly into engagement with the teeth 58 of the dog and then gradually releases the cord thus causing the dog to rotate clockwise until it reaches the clamping position shown in Fig. 1 in which the teeth 42a, Fig. 4, clamp the cord against the roller 20, after which the cord may be released.

In order to limit the backward rotation of the dog, the same is provided with 2. lug 45 that engages an arcuate slot 46 in the inner side 32 of the casing which limits the swinging movement of the dog.

In Fig. 7 is shown a modified form of cordlock. This form of construction differs from that described above in that the casing ll is cast preferably, though notnecessarily, die cast, and has one or more integral laterally extending lugs or fingers 48 at the upper edge of the casing and one or more lugs 49 at the lower edge of the casing for receiving between these upper and lower lugs '28 thereon, as in employed for this purpose.

the head strip l I. The parting strip or bar 5| may, if desired, be cast integral with the casing. Since the construction of the cord lock mechanism within the casing 47 is substantially the same as that within the casing 3|, enough of the parts are designated by the same reference characters as to identify the structure. Since the parts are alike, it is not thought necessary to repeat the description at this point further than to state that the casing is applied to the head 10 strip by a pin or bolt 38 which is threaded into a supporting plate 27 having the supporting hook the previously described construction. The two casings are interchangeable.

It will thus be seen that simple, inexpensive 15 mechanism for raising and lowering porch shades and the like and holding them in adjusted position has been provided and that such mechanism operates freely and efiiciently and with a minimum of eifort on the part of the operator. 20

It is thought from the foregoing, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, that the operation and construction of my device will be apparent to those skilled in the art and that changes in size, shape, proportion or detail may 9 be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A cord lock for cords for porch shades comprising a casing, a roller journaled in said casing, over which said cords extend, said roller having a plain peripheral surface and having a hub projection at each side therefor for reducing frictional resistance to therotation of the roller, and an eccentric gripping member pivoted in said casing and adapted to cooperate with said roller for gripping said cords, and an inverted U-shaped casing for housing said roller and member, said casing having hook members extending laterally for engaging over the upper edge of 40 a head strip to which it is adapted to be attached and a bolt extending axially through said roller for constituting a journal therefor and adapted to extend through said head strip for securing said casing to said strip.

2. A cord lock comprising a casing formed from sheet metal into an inverted U-shaped member, tongues struck up from said casing and bent up and outward for engaging the upper edge of a shade head strip, said casing having a tongue struck out of its lower portion and extending out-' 9 ward therefrom for engaging beneath said head strip, a roller within said casing, and a pivot for said roller extending through said casing and head strip.

3. In a porch shade having a head strip, a cord lock comprising a casing having positioning tongues extending outward therefrom for engaging above and below said strip, a roller within said casing, shade operating cords extending over said roller and downward through said casing, an attaching hook on the opposite side of said head strip from said roller, and a pivot pin for said roller extending through said casing and threaded into said hook for attaching said casing and hook to said head strip. a

4. In a porch shade, a head strip, an inverted U-shaped clip engaging said head strip, a glide member, clip and supporting member and constituting a pivot for said glide member, and the 7 sole means for attaching said clip, glide and supporting members to said head strip.

5. In a slatted shade, a head strip, a shade secured thereto, a supporting hook having means thereon for attaching a cord for elevating said shade, a cord lock comprising a casing, a roller within said casing over which said cord extends, a bolt extending through said casing roller and threaded in said supporting hook, and gripping means for clamping said cord against said roller for holding the cord and shade in adjusted. position.

6. In a rollable slatted shade having a head piece, a slatted shade attached thereto and cords for rolling up said shade, a cord lock comprising a casing formed of an inverted U-shaped strip of sheet metal having tongues struck out of its upper portion and bent laterally for engaging the top edge of said head-piece, a tongue bent outwardly for engaging the lower edge of said head-piece for positioning said casing, a roller within said casing, an attaching member on the rear side of said head-piece, a bolt extending through said casing roller and secured to said attaching member, and an eccentrically mounted dog for gripping said cord for holding the same, said dog having fine teeth for engaging said cord for turning said dog and having coarse teeth for gripping said cord without injuring the same.

7. A cord lock for slat shades comprising a cast casing having laterally extending lugs at the upper and lower edges, a head piece received between said upper and lower lugs, a side plate having a supporting hook on one end, a bolt extending though said casing and head piece and secured in said side plate for securing said casing and head piece together.

8. A cord lock for shades comprising a casing, upper and lower laterally extending lugs for receiving a shade head piece between them, a roller within said casing over which the shade operating cords are adapted to pass, and an eccentrically pivoted dog below and laterally of said roller, said dog having coarse teeth at its free endand having sharp teeth adjacent to its pivoted end for engaging said cords for rotating said dog for gripping the cords between said coarse teeth and roller, the toothed end of said dog being heavier than the opposite end whereby the dog will automatically move to inoperative position when released.

9. A cord lock for slat shades comprising a casing formed from a single plate of sheet metal in the form of an inverted U having tongues struck out from the plate for extending across the upper and lower edges of a head strip to which the casing is adapted to be attached, a bolt extending through an intermediate portion of said casing for attaching said casing to said head strip, a roller mounted on said bolt, an attaching member mounted on said bolt and having means to which an end of a shade lifting cord may be attached, and an eccentric lock mounted within said casing for gripping said cord for holding said shade in elevated position.

AZEL C. HOUGHJ 

